The Dragon's New Flame
by WingedClover
Summary: Two years before Aang's awakening, Prince Zuko has been banished. His uncle Iroh offers him a way to get strong enough to defeat the Avatar. Unfortunately, after learning how to make his fire stronger he loses his drive and now has to regain his flame while making new allies on his new journey.
1. The Son of the Inferno

The mirrors were broken, glass was scattered across the floor and the walls were scorched. At the center was the Prince of the Fire Nation with tears racing down his scarred face. Iroh, the retired general, had to make an effort to help him through this. He was alone when he lost Lu Ten but Zuko did not need to be alone. The prince turned around, "Uncle. Is it true? Azula told me I will be banished. She said the only way to regain my honor is to capture the Avatar."

Iroh placed his hand on Zuko's shoulder, "I am sorry. If I hadn't let you go to the meeting then-"

"No." the prince stood up, "It is all my fault. I insisted on going and I was foolish for speaking out of turn. Now I will have to take down the Avatar."

"How do you plan on that?"

"I'll scour the world for him. I'll bring him to my father and I will prove my honor."

"With what skills Prince Zuko? The Avatar may be around one hundred years old with bending techniques beyond any other. You are better off living in solace. Live a new life away from this war..."

"I'll never run away from a chance to reclaim my honor! Why would I ever do that?!"

Iroh sighed, "Prince Zuko. If you really want your firebending to be as strong. If you really want to reclaim _honor_ , then you will have to go to the ruins of the Sun Warriors. Once you learn the ancient firebending secrets there you will be stronger. You will learn techniques that are on the level of dragons. Be careful though, there may be a few traps still lying around."

"I will leave before dawn then. Thank you Uncle." Zuko bowed.

Iroh bowed back, "I'm merely happy to see you smile once again Prince Zuko."

The prince sighed and hugged his uncle, "I'm sorry."

* * *

Zuko took a ship to leave the mainland and paid for a small boat to the ruins. The banished prince walked through until he noticed a wire. He stepped over and examined it while noting that the wires should have been old but they actually looked fairly new.

The prince pressed on and walked up several steps to a mural. The picture depicted a Sun Warrior surrounded by flames that were being spouted from two dragons.

 _The warrior was not getting burned or hurt at all by the dragon's flames. It could be possible that it is a technique that Uncle used to kill one of the last dragons._

He approached a sealed door. Zuko turned around to see a light hitting the floor. The prince examined the door, the floor and the light until he realized that the only way to open it was once the light hit the sunstone at a certain angle. He pulled out one of his swords and reflected the light onto the stone.

The door opened and revealed an empty room with statues depicting two figures performing a certain dance. He noticed the tiles and tried performing the Dancing Dragon but it needed two partners in order to find out what would happen. The prince left the room and decided to explore more.

Zuko began to investigate the rest of the area until he was surrounded by warriors in tribal clothing.

"Why do you trespass on our lands? Are you a thief?" the Sun Chief raised an eyebrow.

"Of course he is." one tribesman interjected.

"Quiet. Ham Ghao."

"No. I am Prince Zuko the ... former Crown Prince of the Fire Nation. I came here to learn the ancient secrets of firebending." the fallen prince answered.

"If you wish to learn the ways of the Sun, you must learn them from the Masters Ran and Shaw," he got closer to Zuko with a hard look, "When you present yourselves to them, they will examine you, they will read your hearts, your souls and your ancestry. If they deem you worthy they'll teach you, if they don't you will be destroyed on the spot."

* * *

The Sun Warriors guided him to a monument with a great flame at the center. The wall had ancient writings he was not familiar with and the flame was enormous.

"If you're going to see the masters you must bring them a piece of the Eternal Flame. This fire is the very first one. It was given to man by the dragons. We have kept it going for thousands of years." the Sun Chief explained.

"I don't believe it." Zuko was amazed by the flame.

The prince thought to himself, _Maybe this is what Uncle was talking about. Achieving the power on the level of dragons would definitely help me take down the Avatar._

The Chief continued, "You will take a piece of it to the masters to show your commitment to the sacred art of firebending."

He reached out and gathered fire from the Eternal Flame to give Zuko a piece, "This ritual illustrates the essence of Sun Warrior philosophy, you must maintain a constant heat. The flame will go out if you make it too small, make it big and you might lose control."

"Remember this: Fire is life, not just destruction." he lectured.

 _Okay, maybe he is talking about breathing fire. I should try to become fire by ... eating it? No that is a terrible idea._

The Sun Chief pointed towards a stone structure between two mountains, "You will take your flame up there. The cave of the masters is beneath that rock."

Zuko quickly made haste to get to the masters. He had to stop a few times due to his flame constantly growing too big. The prince took a deep breath _. The flame is supposed to be life. I could be pushing too hard. Am I lacking focus? I already know it is though. To capture the Avatar._

Once Zuko reached the top he was met by all the Sun Warriors and their Chief.

"Facing the judgement of the firebending masters will be very dangerous for you. Your ancestors are directly responsible for the dragons' disappearance."

"I know I would." Ham Ghao put his hands on his hips.

Zuko looked down at his fire as the Sun Warriors began the ritual. _I can do this. If the masters judge me wrong I can take them. Uncle must have done something to learn from them if he knew anything about this._

"Bring 'em out!" the prince ordered.

"Chanters!" the Sun Chief called out.

Zuko walked up the steps with his flame as the ritual began. One tribesman told him to present his flame and then the call for the masters was sounded. The earth continued to shake until two dragons flew out from the cave. The prince's flame diminished before the dragons Ran and Shaw.

 _Dragons?! Uncle didn't kill them?! Maybe he impressed them?! They are doing some formations ... I didn't learn any... except for the dance! It's my only hope._

 _"_ Hehe. New food for the masters." Ham Ghao said with glee.

"Quiet, Ham Ghao." the Chief hushed him.

He looked away and muttered, "What? Everyone is thinking it."

The prince performed the Dancing Dragon as best he could. By the end of it the dragons were hovering parallel to each other. They were ready to judge him. He was frozen in fear as the dragons growled and breathed their fire.

Zuko cried out in fear only to realize he was surrounded by a beautiful flame with a plethora of colors. The dragons' fire was _life_ , it was _love_ and it was _pure energy_. The flames even seemed to _speak_ to him or show him things.

"I understand." the prince said aloud.

The flame dispersed, the dragons went back to their caves and the ritual was over. The rest of the Sun Warriors left as Zuko walked down to the Sun Chief.

"That fire was beautiful. I saw so many colors that I never imagined."

"Yes. They judged you and gave you visions of the meaning of firebending."

"I can't believe there are still living dragons. My uncle Iroh said he faced down the last dragon and killed it. He lied."

"Actually, it wasn't a total lie. Iroh was the last outsider to _face_ the masters. They deemed him worthy and passed the secret onto him."

"The secret ... the power I felt back there was like harnessing the entire sun. You guys realize this right?"

"Well ... our nation is called the Sun Warriors. So yeah."

"It must be why my firebending is even stronger. It's raw energy that requires balance instead of anger. Thank you." the prince bowed.

"Now that you learned the secrets and you know of our tribes existence we have no choice but to imprison you here forever."

Zuko's jaw dropped. _What?!_

The chief joked, "Just kidding."

 _Okay._

"But seriously. Don't tell anyone." he urged the former prince.

Zuko nodded in agreement and walked away to his boar.

* * *

Zuko was confused once he rode back to the mainland. _I can't use that power against the Avatar. I can't 'love' honor._ He looked to see a figure waiting for him on he beach.

 _Wait who's that on the shore?_

It was his Uncle.

The prince hugged his uncle as he got off of the boat, "Thank you. I now know how to defeat the Avatar... but it's love. Uncle. I can't do this alone. I won't be able to use that fire. It won't help me regain my honor."

"Prince Zuko. You will have to find something you care more about than anything else in this world and fight for it. You were right when you disagreed with that general. You cared about the lives of the men who fight for this nation. That is _honor_. That was _love_ and _compassion_ your mother would have wanted from a Fire Lord. Your father was wrong."

"You're wrong! My Father loves me! He will accept me!"

"Zuko. What father scars his own son over a disagreement? You saw the truth of firebending. He does not care for you. What love is there in that scar he gave you! There was no love in that fire except hatred."

The prince cried out and tried to shoot a fireball towards the sky but nothing came. Not even a small spout of flame.

"Why?!" he yelled as he dropped to his knees.

"Prince Zuko. You must leave this behind you. Otherwise the anger inside you will destroy you."

Iroh continued as he pointed to a nearby ship, "I have a ship ready to take you to the Earth Kingdom. Try to find a new purpose for your fire. I guess this is farewell, Prince Zuko. I hope to see you with beautiful flames the next time we meet."

 _I will find my fire. I will find it once again._ The prince thought to himself.


	2. The Scars

Zuko traveled for three weeks on the road after leaving the boat. He stopped at a small farming village just as he had for the past several villages to look for any ideas or leads on the Avatar's location.

A girl approached him as he walked past the hospital, "Excuse me. Would you like have dinner with my mother and I? You look like you haven't had much for a while."

Zuko scratched his head, "You don't really need to do anything for me. I'll be fine on my own. Besides I need to get going."

"Oh, don't get worried about food. My mom always makes too much roast duck. We could even give you some supplies."

"I'll come then."

"By the way, what's your name?"

"My name is uh... Lee."

"Okay. My name is Song. It's a pleasure to meet you, Lee"

* * *

The scarred prince started eating dinner with Song.

Song's mother sat down to join, "By any chance are you a refugee Lee? We were once refugees ourselves."

"When I was a little girl the Fire Nation raided our farming village. All the men were taken away. It was the last time I ever saw my father", Song chimed in.

Zuko winced at the revelation, "I haven't seen my mother in many years. I haven't seen my father for some time as well."

"Oh. Is your father fighting in the war?" Song asked.

"Yeah," he looked away, "Would you mind if I caught some fresh air outside?"

"Of course." Song's mother answered.

* * *

Zuko sat down on the porch. __It's been a while since I had dinner like that. We actually talked. I haven't done that since ... since mother left. After that father banished me, and then I lost my bending. What else can go wrong? Is Azula going to hunt me down to finish me off? Should I even care about a family or a nation that doesn't want me? The Fire Nation tore apart my family just like this one. My parent's stopped caring about me. The flames I saw in the dragon had life in them. Yet Father's fire ... it was like any other ordinary fire before I came to the island ... hate. All they had was hate and these people suffer... No. That's the price of war. The enemy and their people will suffer because of their own weakness. I was weak. That's why Father banished me. It's probably why mother left me ... But that can't be right ... It can't be right. Can it?__

Song stepped onto the porch, "May I join you?"

He didn't reply or even look at her.

She knelt down and continued, "I know what you've been through. We've all been through it."

 _ _You lost your father but I was abandoned by my mother and rejected by my father. Azula's happy i'm gone too ... Uncle's the only one who actually cared and he's not even here.__

Song sat down, "The Fire Nation has hurt you."

She tried to touch his face but he grabbed her hand and gently put it down.

Zuko stared her down. Don't _ _try to touch someone else's burns. You may have had it hard but you don't have the scars.__

"It's okay. They've hurt me too," Song pulled up her skirt to show her own unique scar.

The scarred prince's good eye opened up as he looked at her scar.

 _ _I'm sorry.__

Song looked at him with a smile, "Don't be depressed, Lee."

He stood up, "I-I can't stay here."

"Lee, what's wrong?"

Zuko put out his palm and made a flame.

"You're a firebender, Lee?"

"Forgive me. I apologize for everything my people have done to you." He bowed in respect and shame.

The scarred outcast walked away and took the road to the east.

* * *

"Song, where's Lee?" her mother asked.

"He's gone." she sniffled.

"Without a proper goodbye?"

"He was a firebender."

She rushed to her daughter, "Did he hurt you?!"

"No, Lee helped me."

"What did he do?"

"Lee showed me that there are good people in the Fire Nation. He apologized for everything they did to our family and he showed me this beautiful flame. His flame was different from the firebender's flame that burned me. It was like he was holding a rainbow in his hand. His flame was meant for something other than destroying."


	3. The Deserter

After several more days of travel, Zuko overheard some children speak of a strange old man near the opposite side of the woods. The wandering prince decided to investigate this old man right away at noon. He searched the woods for an hour until a swarm of hooded men surrounded him.

"That scar ... there is no doubt about it. You're Prince Zuko!" one of the men accused.

"Who are you?!" Zuko demanded.

"A banished prince holds no power in a land he's from or currently exiled to." another man stated.

The cloaked men took his weapons, tied him up, gagged him, blindfolded him and led him to their camp.

* * *

The men took him inside of a tent, cut his ties, and took off the blindfold along with the gag. Inside of the tent was an old man meditating within the center of an arrangement of candles forming a circle.

"Why don't you turn around and face me Avatar?" Zuko inquired.

The mysterious man turned around to show his face,"You should know i'm not the Avatar."

"Jeong Jeong the Deserter." the former prince muttered.

"Should I call you 'Zuko the Banished' or 'Zuko the Scourge' now that your father has rejected you?"

"He's giving me a chance at regaining honor with the task of capturing the Avatar."

"You want to go back to the man who continues a destructive war and scars his own son?! What kind of idiot are you?!" the candle's fire intensified.

"..."

The flames lessened, "As I thought. We'll hand you over to the Earth Kingdom. All you want to do is spread destruction like all firebenders."

"You're a firebender too! You regret your own firebending?"

"Yes. I saw my own student's fire as well as my own create destruction that hurt so many people. Innocent lives that had nothing to do with the war."

"I disagree. Fire is life." The scarred prince put out his hand and put out an orange flame.

"What are you getting at?"

"Just let me focus."

His flame began to change into a yellow flame with purple, green and red showing through. The Deserter was astonished by this and his candles went out.

"Let's go for a walk."

* * *

Jeong Jeong and Zuko put on cloaks and walked alongside a river near the camp.

"That flame ... it was graceful. When did you gain that fire?" Jeong Jeong asked.

"All I can say is that I went to the Sun Warrior ruins to learn firebending secrets to take on the Avatar. Instead I lost most of my firebending. All I can do is show off is that small flame."

"You are lacking harmony. That flame showed me life, love and harmony." the Deserter stopped walking," You don't know whether you want to stay loyal to the Fire Nation or not do you?"

"... You are right about that Jeong Jeong. No one in my family really cares for me other than my uncle Iroh. My mother left, my father banished me and Azula was happy to tell me the news. It was a terrible family but it was _my_ family."

"I was once proud in my own fire but then I felt regret. Now that I have seen your flame ... i'll need to accept my fire for what it is." Jeong Jeong put out his hand and tried to create a fire like the prince's own flame. The Deserter's flame was even bigger than his own and had more colors to it.

"Is it honorable to fight my own father?" Zuko looked away.

"Honor doesn't come from parents or peers. I was honored by the Fire Nation, now my honor comes from the rebels. It's subjective and only you really deem whether you are honorable or not Zuko. Quit making excuses for Ozai, you know what must be done. That little flame you held in your hand wasn't made by thoughts of your father. You cared about someone other than him. "

Zuko didn't respond he just looked down.

 _I didn't think about Dad at all ... I didn't even miss him. I just wanted his approval for once. Especially, since mom left me with him._

Jeong Jeong put his hand on his shoulder, "Soon you will choose whether to be burned again or to live? I've been burning on both sides of the war. With this flame I will fight the Fire Nation. Hopefully you will embrace life and accept your fire. You should probably wear a mask until you finally make up your mind. Earth Kingdom soldiers and guards will hear of your exile eventually. Bounties are a decent start to build up money and then once you're ready, fighting Fire Nation soldiers with a squadron of allies."

"I'll think about it."

* * *

The banished prince and the Deserter headed back to camp. When they returned it was sunset. Jeong Jeong retired to his tent while the banished prince stayed out by the camp fire. One man approached Zuko,"You must be a part of the cause for Jeong Jeong to walk with you and let you walk around."

"I might join your cause... I haven't decided on it yet." the scarred prince replied.

the stranger grinned, "Well if you are alright by Jeong Jeong then you are alright by all of us."

"I never caught your name. You seem familiar ..."

"I'm Chey. I used to be a captain and an explosives expert in the Fire Nation Army."

"Sorry about that ... I should've remembered you."

"Don't worry about it. Everyone remembers Jeong Jeong was the first guy to leave the Fire Nation and survive. No one really pays attention to the second guy."

"At least you have a lesser chance of being recognized ... which is something I think you might be able to help me with."

"What do you need?"

"A mask."

"No problem." Chey pulled out a red mask.

"I think people would guess i'm from the Fire Nation with the red mask."

"Yeah. Let's use the blue one. It'll throw people off and blue isn't a Fire Nation favorite."

"Thanks," Zuko smiled," This is farewell for now."

"You don't want to say goodbye to Jeong Jeong?"

"He knows we'll meet again someday." the scarred prince put on his mask and continued walking east towards an old trade route.

 _If i'm going to be on his level i'll need to use that special fire. The prince of the Fire Nation will have to go away for a while. For now, I am going to become a bounty hunter._


	4. The Huntress

Zuko was wearing his mask as he walked on a trade route. He continued on the path until from he was surrounded by a group of bandits.

"There's no point in trying to look tough and scary. Just hand over anything valuable before we have to take it from you." the bandit leader reasoned.

The Blue Spirit removed his swords from his scabbards and took form.

"Looks like we have a fighter. Take him out." the leader backed away as his men raised their weapons.

Two of the bandits lunged forward but were both blocked. The masked stranger grabbed one man by the arm as they retracted their swords, squeezed it until the assailant lost grip of his sword and finished it off by smashing his elbow into the ruffian's face. The other outlaw tried to stab the masked man but the Blue Spirit dodged the attack while knocking out the bandit with the end of his sword handle.

"Everyone attack at once!" the bandit boss hurled a stone at the masked stranger.

The Blue Spirit sidestepped to avoid the attack and ran away into the woods.

"Don't let him get away. He's not making a fool of us!" the bandit chief commanded.

* * *

The bandits lost sight of the Blue Spirit until he jumped from the trees to knock out of the outlaws with a firm kick. He dashed toward two more bandits and struck their blades from their hands.

One of the two bandits started crying, "Sorry! Just let us live like the others!"

The Blue Spirit hit them both in the gut and turned to the rest of the bandits. The half of the remaining members as their leader started hurling rocks at the masked stranger.

"Just who do you think you are?!" the leader yelled.

The Spirit started blocking the stones with swords and pressing forward until the bandit chief sent him flying out of the forest with small boulder. He was basking in the sun while being slumped against a rock wall.

 _ _It feels like a giant dragon moose rammed into me.__

The chief and the remaining bandits got closer.

"You should've given me whatever you had. Now that you tried to play hero i'm just gonna crush you." the chief summoned a large rock from the earth to finish off the Spirit.

All of the remaining bandits' jaws dropped as Zuko's hand raised up, spewed forth yellow flames with green and red accents to knock down their leader. The masked stranger quickly got into a firebending stance. However, a loud roar erupted from the wilderness before the bandits or the Spirit could make a move.

An eyeless beast with a female rider jumped between the bandits and the Spirit. The animal rushed towards the ruffians at it's masters command and was paralyzing them with it's own tongue.

The bandit chief stood up only to be taken down by the woman's mount.

"You've got stones to try and take on a whole group of bandits all on your lonesome." She got off of her animal.

He raised his fists as she approached him.

"Haha. Don't worry about me hurting you. I just want the bandit behind you. He stole from a client that's paying for a shipment he stole. Besides, you'd be down already if we wanted it that way."

The Blue Spirit lowered his hands. __Fine.__

"Great to know you understanding what I'm saying." The bounty hunter began tying up her target.

Zuko picked up his swords as she lay the chief down.

"My name is June and my friend here is Nyla. There's a village not too far from here where we can have a drink if you'd like."

"..."

 _ _Sure.__ The Blue Spirit nodded.

June and Nyla started down the path with the masked man,"You're just my type. Strong, doesn't talk much and knows when to say yes. C'mon, Blue."

He stopped and turned his head sideways.

"Don't worry. I'll think of something cooler once we get to the cantina."

 _ _It's a start.__


	5. The Blue Spirit

June and the Blue Spirit followed the path until they were close to the town gates.

The bounty hunter stopped in her tracks, "We need to talk about this before we go any further. Are you going to keep wearing that mask, Blue?"

 _ _I'll have to be Lee for this one.__ He took off his mask in front of her. "Call me Lee when my mask is off."

She was somewhat surprised by his appearance. His eyes were golden, his hair was black, and his face was pale. June quickly deduced that he was from the Fire Nation. There was no way he was from the Earth Kingdom, Water Tribes or Air Temples. There was only one problem with that idea though, his scar. If he were a runaway soldier it would explain his skills with the blade but it could not explain why he would decide to stay with her. But something else could...

"Is there a problem?" Lee asked.

"Nothing. It's just funny how you tried to look cool when you took your mask off."

"I wasn't trying!"

She ignored him, "Sure, Blue. Come on, we've got places to be.."

* * *

They entered the town and turned in the bandit leader for fifty silver pieces. June tied Nyla to a pole and went into the tavern with Lee.

"Who want's to arm wrestle me for ten silver pieces?!" the huntress called out.

Three guys got up to arm wrestle her.

She turned to Lee, "Why don't you find us a job?"

"Right here boy!" the bartender called to him.

"Do you have a job for us?" Lee inquired.

"Yeah," he pulled out a wanted poster of a young man, "This is Mubi. He has been stealing from everybody in town and we caught him but he's been hiding out in the woods. June can track him with this torn piece of clothing he had."

"We'll catch him."

"Of course you'll catch him. You're with June."

"Right."

Lee walked over and brought the torn cloth. "Alright I have-"

"DRINKS ON ME EVERYBODY!" the huntress shouted as she took down the last man.

"Ah, June."

"What is it?"

"I have the job."

"Alright. We'll do it first thing tomorrow."

"Fine. I'll see if there are any places we can sleep."

"No need. I'm a regular here. The bartender will give us a room."

* * *

June and Lee walked up together to see that there was only one bed.

"Yeah. I'm sorry kid. You'll have to sleep on the floors."

"What?"

"Nah, you can sleep in the bed. Just make sure not to torch the tavern."

 _ _How did she find out?__ He pulled out his sword.

"I guessed right, you are from the Fire Nation."

"What are we going to do now?"

"Become bounty hunting partners."

"What?"

"Bounty hunters only care about 2 things: targets and coins. I don't really care about you being a prince. I would like an honest answer though, Zuko."

Zuko sheathed his blade, "How did you find out?"

"Anybody with a good head on their shoulders could tell. There were reports of you, the banished prince. Also, no one in the Earth Kingdom has pale skin, black hair and golden eyes. That's more of a Fire Nation deal."

"What if I was a refugee or runaway?"

"Your right. But you already admitted to my assumption. The only problem with it is that you're supposed to be a firebender."

"I can't bend that much anymore. I'm relearning firebending."

"Well, your sword skills are probably just as good. Also, you're catching on already. Honesty will keep me happy. In exchange i'll tell you a fact about me. I was born a bounty hunter. It's what i'm good at and it keeps me well fed. Now it's your turn Zuko."

"My mission was to hunt down the Avatar. I'm bounty hunting until I make my decision on whether to fight my father and sister or not. Or at least until I perfect my firebending."

"That's rough, kid."

"You're right. I've had it rough. But people in the Earth Kingdom have had it just as rough."

"That's why I kept you around. Smart, tough, and doesn't talk much."

"You're very smart and skilled as well." he scratched his head, "Good night."

* * *

Once it was morning they both left town while riding on Nyla. Zuko put on his mask as they entered the forest.

"Ready, Zuko?" June asked.

"I'm not him right now." he replied.

"Y'know. We're going to have to talk about this Blue Spirit thing you're going through after we do more of these."

They continued riding through the forest until Nyla started slowing down.

"What's wrong boy?" June asked her pet.

"We're near a Fire Nation stronghold. Our target probably hid himself here if he knew anything about you or your shirshu. The smell of coal is probably more apparent to him. I'll sneak into the fortress and see if they caught him."

"Fine. We'll back out and come back in an hour."

* * *

The Blue Spirit climbed up a tree and tried to use the fog to evade any lookouts. Once he got to the wall his eyes met with the eyes of a man with a red tattoo on his face. The man was a Yuyan Archer, an elite among all archers in the Fire Nation Army. He spun around and ran, only to fall flat on his face as he felt a sharp pain in his thigh. It was an arrow.


	6. The Stronghold

Time was the last thing The Blue Spirit had. Another arrow came close to knocking off his mask as he narrowly got into behind a wall. More Yuyan Archers surrounded him as the alarm was called. There was one familiar face among all of the grunts and archers.

 _Colonel Shinu. It's been a while since I have seen his face._

"Are you an Earth Kingdom spy? Where are your allies?" the veteran asked.

 _I have an arrow in my thigh. You actually expect me listen and respond like a good little prisoner?_

"Fine. Take off his mask." he stepped back.

One of Shinu's men began to reach for the mask. The Blue Spirit jumped up and put a sword to his neck. The old colonel was not impressed.

Shinu laughed. "What do you expect to accomplish with that man as a hostage? All of my archers can take you down the second you get within range. If you hurt him, you will not survive this encounter."

 _I once thought that was the way to live but now ... I have to repay all the people my Father has hurt._

"Put your weapon down before we put one through you." he commanded.

The Blue Spirit ducked and twirled as an archer fired an arrow. He put out his hands and shot out a small ring of dragon fire to shield him.

Colonel Shinu was stunned by the mystical fire that was before him. Only a prodigy or Royal Family member should be able to create such powerful flames. The fire didn't burn him but it did show all the men something else.

He gritted his teeth as he raised his hand, "Everyone stand down, this person is not an enemy. He is an ally. Treat him and take him to my quarters."

* * *

The colonel sat across from the Blue Spirit. He looked at the masked man's size, it wasn't too different from a certain familiar face.

"Zuko?" Shinu mused.

"Why do you think I am the former prince?" the masked man replied.

"I've seen firebending many times on the battlefield and at festivals. No one can do that other than the Fire Lord or someone else in the Royal Family would be capable of something like that."

"What if i'm just a prodigy?"

"There's no need to lie. Your fire showed something to everyone. A good amount of my mine might try to deny it but that fire _showed_ us things. I'm not even a bender and I still understood what it was saying. What _you_ were saying. The Fire Nation has scarred innocent people and even it's own during this war. It needs to end."

"I figured you would die for your Fire Lord."

"Ozai sacrificed an entire division of new recruits for a small victory. Even you understood that it was a terrible idea but you got burned for it. In addition, many years ago, he even forced one of my best men to resign. This war is a vanity project for him. You seem to let people fight for themselves rather than for him."

Zuko pulled off his mask, "I'm happy to see that you actually care about your men."

"I think I should be saying that to you sir." Shinu grinned.

"There's no need to call me that. Especially, when I am freelancing as a bounty hunter."

"Is that why you're here?"

"I'm looking for a target. A thief named Mubi."

"Oh, we have him in the chambers for questioning."

"Perfect."

Zuko put his mask back on, took his target and left the stronghold.

* * *

A few minutes later, June was waiting to see a limping Blue Spirit dragging their target. Mubi looked scared and the Spirit had a bandage around his thigh.

June lifted the thief over a shoulder, "Made any new friends, Blue?"

"Yeah, I think I made quite a few." He opened up his hand to show a small rainbow colored fireball.

The huntress smirked, "Blue, it's great to see you have your fire back."

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Pardon me for the delay. I'll put out chapter 7 sooner to catch up with the schedule. Thank you for reading and please tell me what you think about the story so far.


	7. The Professor

The former prince recovered within a couple weeks and continued to work with June for quite a while. They had just finished up turning in another target.

"Six months have passed since we met."Zuko took off his mask, "Eight, since I was banished by Ozai."

"Why does it matter?" June put down her drink and sat down.

"My firebending has gotten better but I still wouldn't be able to hold up for long against someone like a master bender with just my bending. I'd have to end things quickly."

"We haven't gotten our next target yet. Why are you even talking about this?"

"My target is the Fire Lord."

"You still need more time. You said it yourself." The huntress stood up.

"There's a man known as Professor Zei, whom knows about a great library that contains ancient knowledge. That knowledge can help me master firebending and use lightning."

"Why would you even wanna leave this abruptly?"

"I have to go to him and make him pay for all the people he's burned!" He got closer.

"Burned, huh? Are you sure it's about people or just you?"

They were face to face.

"Both. When I met Song and Jeong Jeong, their scars had reminded me of my own and changed my own outlook on the Fire Nation as a whole. I want to end the war for them and for myself."

"Yourself?"

"Right now. I want a family that loves me and makes me honored to be with them. My mother left me, my father banished me and my own sister hated me. This was just a means to an end and we both knew it from the start. You want to be a bounty hunter and I want to defeat the Fire Lord."

"Zuko. You couldn't be more wrong. I want to help you more than anything. If you become Fire Lord, i'll become the Fire Nation's greatest bounty hunter. At the very least, the war would be over and I could focus more on crooks and less on fighting Fire Nation soldiers who don't like me trespassing. Nothing is going to make me change my mind."

 _She's really got this thought out._

"So what are we waiting for, Blue?"

"Hold on, let me grab my mask."

They walked out to see Professor Zei rubbing Nyla, "Mr. Spirit, is this your shirshu? I've never seen one up close. "

"Actually, she belongs to me. I'm June." the huntress said.

"Well then, are you two ready to go to the Si Wong Desert?"

June looked at her masked partner, "Yeah."

The Blue Spirit nodded, "Yes."

"Your gonna have to get used to Blue not talking much, Doc. He's been like this since we first met."

"That's fine ma'am." the professor got onto the saddle.

This Library will hopefully be worth the time.


	8. New Destiny

It took them two weeks to get to the Si Wong Desert, the area where all the sightings had taken place. A few more weeks passed before they even pinned down the Library's location, due to all the sandbenders trying to steal Nyla and all the incorrect information Professor Zei had been given by some travelers.

"Hey Blue, getting roasted under that mask, eh?" June slapped him on the back. He had worn a sedge hat over his mask to shield him from the sun. The sunlight helped him with his fire but it was unbearable all the layers he wore. All he could do in response was make an odd grumbling sound that was more like a croak.

"The great Blue Spirit croaks in agony." Professor Zei chimed in.

 _Please don't encourage her Professor._

"There we go Zei! You're a nice change 'o pace to Blue over there!"

 _Well, this is better than getting ambushed by sandbenders again._

"Hey, there's the library!" the Professor pointed towards a tower.

* * *

They rushed towards the Tower and realized it had sunk beneath the sand.

"It can't be sunken!" Zei fell down and started crying.

"Wait! Look!" Zuko looked saw that a fox was approaching the tower with a scroll in his mouth.

The small fox ran up the tower and entered through the window.

The professor jumped to his feet, "That fox was carrying a scroll! It must be a taking outside knowledge into the Library! We must enter through there!"

"Nyla can't fit through there." June noted.

"I'll go with Zei to scavenge any information. You can just come back tomorrow with Nyla once we're done." the Blue Spirit answered.

"Fine." the Huntress agreed.

* * *

The Blue Spirit climbed up the tower and slid down a rope alongside the Professor. The Library was magnificent, it was ornate, and had been consistently maintained.

 _Something has been taking care of this Library for years in the Desert. I wonder if another civilization lives here?_

He then heard a bird. A very large owl. The owl started talking, " I am Wan Shi Tong, he who knows ten thousand things, and you are obviously humans; which, by the way, are no longer permitted in my study."

"I need to learn anything that could help me end the Great War and defeat the Fire Lord." the Blue Spirit bowed.

"The last time a human came here, he burned down the entire Fire Nation section."

"I promise I won't burn anything. If I help the other nations win the war, then I will become Fire Lord and restore the section that this past person had destroyed."

"Are you royalty then?"

"Yes. I am the former Crown Prince, Zuko."

"Hmph. Is there anything else you can offer me?"

"I have a first edition tome! Oh, pardon me, i'm Professor Zei of Ba Sing Se University and it has been my dream to find this Library!" the professor was sweating, crying and slobbering with excitement. He even started spitting on Wan Shi Tong.

"Fine. You can go, Professor Zei." the Owl Spirit cut the scholar off.

The professor quickly began rummaging through scrolls and books.

"Well, what do you have to offer?" Wan Shi Tong inquired.

"I have discovered the true meaning of firebending. It is life energy given from the sun. I can even create the fire that only dragons can breathe."

"That is very interesting... What do you need?"

"I need to have a stronger spirit in order to use this flame."

"I can help you with that ... but you'd need to make a deal with the spirits."

"What kind of deal?"

He got closer to Zuko, "You will need help us spirits roam your world freely, as we wish."

"How would I do that?"

"By becoming spiritually enlightened and staying that way for about sixty years."

"What's the catch?"

"You have to become the opposite of the Avatar. Someone who maintains chaos instead of balance."

"Why would I do that? I'm trying to create peace."

"Prince Zuko, you shall create peace for many years. You will also create harmony between humans and spirits. Something that has never been achieved by the Avatar, the one who let the world fall into this war. You could simply ignore your job as the maintainer of chaos or even _control_ it. Create small issues in places all over that can be easily taken care of instead the great issue we have to deal with due to the Avatar's inability. You would create a world of peace of many years and maintain the chaos from taking over."

 _I can't pass this up. The war can end, undo those past wrongs and even make sure there is an era of peace without the Avatar._

"That seems to be the perfect deal. Where do we begin my spiritual enlightenment?"

"Spiritual enlightenment can be achieved through meditation and overcoming your own fears. I'd advise reading certain scrolls from Guru Laghima."

"Thank you." Zuko bowed.

"It's my pleasure." Wan Shi Tong bowed back.


	9. The Departure

Zuko spent the next few hours studying scrolls. The professor, on the other hand, explored the library, and endlessly showered Wan Shi Tong with questions about various sections, studies and lost knowledge the Library holds. The owl spirit flew over to Zuko and lurched over him, "When do you two plan on leaving the library?"

"We will leave in the morning." the scarred patron answered.

The librarian stood straight, "Wonderful. Just remember to take notes of the information you find."

"Why is that?"

"You'll need to learn away from me in order to complete your training. The final goal for your meditation training is to enter the Spirit World. Your spirit will be strong enough to master your bending and become the opposite of the Avatar."

"What would you even call the opposite of the Avatar? A Chaos Avatar? A ... Dark Avatar?" He scratched his head.

Wan Shi Tong sighed, "You could ... call it that. I'll tell you more about it once you've reached the Spirit World. Just keep studying until tomorrow."

* * *

The following morning, the scarred patron was ready to leave with all of his notes packed but the professor refused to leave. Tears ran down Zei's eyes, "I just can't. This Library is all I have ever wanted. I would rather die here".

Wan Shi Tong sighed, "You may come back to this Library whenever you wish."

"Thank you!" the professor cried even more.

"Be quiet, this is a library. You of all people should know better."

"Sorry."

* * *

Zuko and Professor Zei climbed through the top of the hole saw June waiting for them. She looked up to them and said, "C'mon your majesty. We're wasting away out here!"

They joined her on Nyla and started riding back to the town known as the Misty Palms Oasis.

"What happened in the tower, Blue?" the huntress inquired.

"We met an owl spirit who helped me figure out how to perfect my firebending." the Blue Spirit answered.

"It talked?"

"His name was Wan Shi Tong." the professor interjected.

"You guys are pulling my leg right?"

"No." the Blue Spirit answered.

"Well, what is our next stop?"

"The town of Gaoling should be the next stop. I can get back to Ba Sing Se on my own, once we get there." Zei answered.

June grinned, "Sounds like a great spot. I've heard about an underground fighting ring over there. The champion is an earthbending kid called the 'Blind Bandit'."

"What do you think Mr. Spirit?" Zei asked.

"That's sounds interesting. I could learn a lot from meeting a prodigy like that ... Hopefully, he's nothing like my sister."

"You have a sister?!" the professor exclaimed.

"Princess Azula, I guess my banishment has overshadowed public knowledge of her outside of the Fire Nation ... that reminds me ... It would be wonderful if you don't breathe a word about the Blue Spirit and the Former Crown Prince of the Fire Nation being the same person. If anyone else finds out..."

"I understand."

"Thanks Zei." Zuko and June said in unison.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** This has really gotten off schedule. I definitely won't be able to put out anything until next Thursday or two weeks from now. Other than that, it's still fun writing this. Thank you all for commenting.


	10. The Wager

It was a hot afternoon, the prince, the huntress and the scribe arrived at Gaoling three days after leaving the desert. Professor Zei immediately started sniffling and tearing up once they passed the city gates. June and Zuko were warming up to the guy after a few weeks but the anthropologist had to return to Ba Sing Se.

He finally stopped sniffling, and bowed in respect to the former prince."Thank you, it was an honor to have ridden with you and to have contributed to the Library. I'll make sure to practice that technique so I can visit that Library, even from the far reaches of Ba Sing Se. With your help, my dream was completed and I am now able to go even further with it. I hope that the war can end so you can be a great emperor."

"Thank you," Zuko bowed back, "Without your direction I wouldn't have made it to the Library and learned what I needed to do."

June slapped the professor on the back, "It's been a fun ride, Zei. Riding with Blue will go back to being boring again with his ' _in character_ ' moments."

"I will miss your humor and your insights on taming shirshus as well."

"No problem."

the professor waved, "Farewell for now, my friends."

Zei walked off towards an inn and Zuko went with June to find about more on the local celebrity, known as the 'Blind Bandit'.

* * *

The Blue Spirit and June entered the town tavern. A few guards were sitting at a table and opposite of the guards were a few scruffy looking guys. The masked hunter asked aloud, "I am the Blue Spirit. Where can fight in the Earth Rumble tournament? I'd like to take on this town's Blind Bandit in a match."

"Too bad. The tournament passed a week ago. Besides, you phonies aren't the real deal. The true Blue Spirit and June are in the Si Wong Desert hunting the guys down there. Those two couldn't even last with the Earth Rumble crew if they were here anyways." one of the scruffy guys barked.

June quickly grabbed him by his shirt, "You wanna run that by us again, buddy?... We are the Blue Spirit and June the Huntress. Back in action to make the Earth Kingdom quake. You either have some serious stones or you've got a hollow head if you think that the greatest bounty hunters against the champion isn't a match worth seeing. Just tell us where to find the guy that runs the rumbles and we'll have our own little pay-per-view. Make me mad and i'll wreck you, and your boys, without Blue's assistance. He'll sit and watch as I do that. You won't be telling the boys and rats that you got rocked by one half the baddest bounty hunters to ever walk the Earth Kingdom over a small disagreement, will ya?"

"Ah ... let's just break things up everyone?" one of the guards hesitantly said.

The huntress stared him down and smiled as she released the man's shirt from her grasp, "Okay, but I still want my answer."

"Xin Fu's in charge." the man squeaked.

"Where do we find him?" the Blue Spirit interjected.

"He comes down here regularly on late afternoons." the bartender chimed in, "Just wait here for him. In the meantime, what do the greatest bounty hunters in the world like to drink on a hot day?"

* * *

Zuko had a glass of water sitting in front of him while June had goaded all the other customers, including the guards and the guy she berated into drinking games and arm wrestling. After a few more hours, Xin Fu entered the tavern.

"Xin Fu, sit down and have a drink. I'd like to have a talk with you."

The promoter sat down, "I don't like to drink while I do business with bounty hunters that track me down like I'm a catch."

"Oh, you made a new rule. That's great and all but l I really want you to book a match between the Blind Bandit and the Blue Spirit."

"How do I even know if you're the real thing?"

Everyone fell silent.

"I'll prove it against one of your earthbenders."

"Without any swords or outside help?"

"If that is what it takes."

"Even without your firebending?" the promoter's grin went from ear to ear.

The Blue Spirit crossed his arms, "I don't know what you are talking about?"

"Really? Rumor has it, that when you met June you used some firebending to take down a bandit leader. I must be wrong." he frowned.

"All I have are my fists and my swords, friend." the masked man lied.

"Then I guess there won't be a problem with my stipulation either, eh?" his grin reformed.

"No problem at all."

Xin Fu and the Blue Spirit shook forearms to confirm the deal.

"So, one week from today, The Blue Spirit will fight with The Big Bad Hippo, and should he win, then at the end of the month he will be facing the Blind Bandit! Tell your all you're friends and fellow Earth Rumble fans that the squared circle is about to get shaken up again with the baddest bounty hunter meeting the world's greatest earthbenders!" the promoter announced to all the customers.


	11. The Princess

The Blue Spirit left the tavern once Xin Fu started advertising the fight. He went to the inn that the Professor was staying at and rented a room for he and June. Zuko entered the room, put his mask inside of his bag and started studying the notes he took from the Library.

 _I'll need to focus on these texts if I am going to replace the Avatar. Hopefully, this advice will work against Earthbenders._

He opened up a scroll and read aloud, "Let go of your earthly tether. Enter the void. Empty and become wind."

 _Let go of the tether that's keeping me from becoming wind? Since i'm a firebender I might have to become a flame. Fire is will, it is energy. Something like air would be emptiness, fire would be completion._

The scarred young man sat down and began meditating on the bed.

 _Completion... I might need to let go of something or maybe I should ... embrace something?_ He touched his scar and began to get lost in train of thought.

* * *

A few minutes later there was a knock at the door.

"Come in, June." Zuko continued to meditate.

"June? You can't recognize your own sister, Zuzu?" a familiar voice introduced herself.

The former prince opened his eyes and slowly turned his head to see the Crown Princess, Azula. A scroll was clutched in her left hand.

"Why are you here?"

"I'm just a concerned sister trying to make sure her brother is alright. Especially, when he is the Blue Spirit." she pulled out his mask from his bag.

"How did you figure that out?"

"Many months ago, when you first began as the Blue Spirit, you attacked several bandits. You used a special type of fire to defeat their leader. Colonel Shinu also reported you to the Fire Lord. Only Father and I know of this other than he. You told him you were trailing the Avatar correct?"

"Y-yes."

"Liar. If you were actually trailing him you would've used a ship to sail around the world and used the Fire Nation resources. Instead you quit like Uncle once things didn't go your way. That's probably why Uncle left, to join you."

 _Uncle left the Fire Nation? Maybe i'll get to thank him for everything._

Azula continued with a grin, "If I were you i'd worry about myself. Especially, since I am here to find out about that _special_ fire of yours and the message Father has to give you."

"Father is letting me back?"

 _Why?_

Her grin grew wider, "Why don't you read it and see after you tell me what strengthens your fire? The scroll is in my hand if you haven't noticed."

"My fire comes from the Sun and my own drive."

"You're not telling me all of it, but maybe this scroll will change your mind." she handed him the parchment.

There was another knock on the door once Zuko started reading the paper. Azula opened the door for the bounty huntress, June.

"Blue, why didn't you tell me you were having family over?"

 _Family? This parchment says I was taken in to be a body to protect the real child of Ozai. Signed by the Fire Lord himself._

Her scarred companion did not answer back. His head hung low over an open scroll on his lap. She noticed the tears that were dropping down onto the paper.

"Is everything okay? I'm not really into family fights. I can just leave."

"Don't worry he's just in denial. Same thing happened when _my_ Mother left. Poor Zuzu."

Zuko lifted up his head head and smiled, "Princess Azula came here to reveal that I was never her brother to begin with."

"Why are you smiling then?" June asked.

The Crown Princess frowned, "He's lost it."

"No. I'm happy ... This is the greatest news I have ever gotten in my entire life. If anything Azula should be sad."

She frowned, "Why would I cry tears over you? We were never close from the start, Zuko."

"During my journey I realized that 'our' so called family wasn't a family at all. You're even lonelier than before you told me this. Ozai adopted me as a meat shield for you, and Ursa only loved me because I _wasn't_ Ozai's child. I'm sorry that you're the only one that hasn't realized he's using you."

Azula punched Zuko across the face, "Don't you dare say that. I won't ever allow that again! You're just saying that because Father always liked me more."

He created a rainbow colored flame in his hand, "To be honest, Zula, I plan on killing Ozai, with this flame right here."

"Why are you calling me Zula? Why are you even telling me this?"

The flame grew more intense, "This is a dragon's flame. My _flame_. This fire came from the sun and the friends and allies that feed my drive, my dream ... to have a _true_ family, one where I can truly be happy."

The former prince stepped closer, "I'll teach you how to use the dragon's flame. Together we can overthrow the Fire Lord and bring peace to world."

She backed away, "N-no you're just saying this to get back at Father! What about honor?"

"I'm doing it for more than that. I've met the people he has hurt and I have been his victim. You are a victim of his as well. There's no honor in being his puppet. Please, give it some thought. You'll come around eventually." He extinguished the flame and stepped back.

The Crown Princess walked out the door, "I'll be back tomorrow. You'll come crying back to me, asking me to convince Father to let you back and i'll kill you. I'll kill you with your own flames Zuko. Meet me in the woods west of the front gates, tomorrow evening, before sundown."

June turned to her companion, "Are you sure about her?"

He smiled again, "She just needs time to think. I did when Uncle Iroh tried to talk to me."

"It's great to see that look on you, Blue. Or should I say Zuzu?"

His grin struggled to stay up. "I'm not going to hear the end of this am I?"

"Nope."


	12. The Red Spirit

On the following evening, Zuko sneaked out of Gaoling to the woods as Lee to meet his sister. He left with no weapons and had to restrain himself from firebending. Once he got into the woods and looked around, he felt a weight pressing down on him from above.

Azula jumped on him and had pinned her former brother face down to the dirt.

"What did you do to me?!" The crown princess whispered in his ear, trying not to scream at him, "I'm no one's tool. Nobody uses me, especially _you_."

"I told you the truth, Azula." His voice was muffled.

She turned the former prince over, "What if I didn't?!"

"I can easily read you right now. You're desperate, you want to tear down everything around you and burn it all to cinders, but you can't. Your parents Ozai and Ursa are holding you back like they did me. Even if you weren't telling the truth, I still plan on restoring peace and defeating Ozai."

The princess slapped him, "Don't you dare call Father by his name!"

Zuko flipped positions with Azula and had her pressed against the ground. His months of bounty hunting and training with the scrolls helped him apply his skills to the needs of the moment and reverse many unpleasant situations such as this one.

"That man is not my Father. He's not worth his weight in ash and neither is that woman we called mother. The only person worth respecting is Uncle Iroh."

Her eyes opened in shock, "That lazy tea drinker turned you?"

"No. I made this decision all on my own." the scarred bounty hunter stood up and released her from his grip.

"Why did you let me go?"

"You can't beat me as you are right now. I can fight extremely well, with and without my bending, while your skills are primarily bending based." the scarred man smiled, "Besides, i'll teach you how to gain back your bending if you will become a part of our group."

Azula started walking back to Gaoling, "I'll agree for now. Lead the way, Zuzu."

 _I can live with that._

* * *

Once the former siblings entered the inn, Zuko and Azula entered the room to see the bounty huntress, June waiting for her with a red mask in hand.

"Welcome, to team Hunter Spirits, Red! It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"

The crown princess turned to Zuko, "You're kidding me, right?"

"Not at all. I even have a gift for you. I hope you'll like it."

"What is it?"

Zuko presented a knife, it read " _Never give up without a fight_ ". The blade was a gift from Uncle Iroh, when they were younger and now this is his gift to her.

"It'll help you with you're training."

"How would this help?"

"Hold the blade and open up your other hand, "He instructed," Now I want you to focus on what you desire most. Let that desire become your flame and harness the fire within you as well as the sun's fire. Empty yourself, then refill your spirit with that one true desire, become the flame."

The crown princess closed her eyes and thought about her greatest desire of all. Her inner fire was being channeled through her body to her left hand. A great blue flame with green accents spouted forth.

"Thank you, Zuko." she hugged him.

They never hugged before.

 _Azula is hugging me. It doesn't feel like a lie or trap. I might regret it, but for now, i'll just go with it._


	13. The Dark Avatar

"You're a bounty hunter until we're ready to reveal ourselves and take on Fire Lord Ozai." the scarred young man smiled.

"When will we be ready?" Azula asked.

"Once we both master this dragon fire. Our power combined with Jeong Jeong's should be able to take on Ozai with or without the Avatar."

"Jeong Jeong has the dragon fire as well?"

"Yes. He is the only other bender able to do so. Uncle might be able to as well..."

June interjected, "How about we focus on meeting the Blind Bandit first?"

"Right." Zuko nodded, "We'll need you to get close and take something of the Blind Bandit's or find a way to trace his identity during my fight with him. You can go around the village as a traveler and ask about both the village and the Blind Bandit without getting noticed at all or drawing any attention to us."

"Fine, but afterwards we are going to train together. I want to see how much stronger you got as a bounty hunter." Azula grinned.

"Deal."

* * *

The renegade princess went back to her room and Zuko meditated while June watched the door. He recited the words of Guru Laghima, " _Let go of your earthly tether, enter the void, empty and become wind._ " He then said to himself, " _Ignite_ _a new flame, enter the void, brighten it and become fire."._ He channeled his inner flame and let himself be released into the spirit world.

As he reopened his eyes he saw shelves upon shelves of scrolls. He was at the Great Library once again. "I see you have become enlightened, Zuko."

The scarred young man bowed, "It is good to see you. Am I ready for training?"

"Not yet. I need you to see someone first."

"Who?"

"Climb on my back and I will take to Vaatu, the spirit of chaos."

"I thought I had to wait years to become the Dark Avatar."

"We found a way to do it as soon as possible rather than wait. This power should help you master elements during the war and defeat the Fire Lord."

Zuko got onto the giant owl spirit's back and was flown over to a giant tree at the center of mountains and rubble. Trapped inside was a giant black spirit with red outlines that was emanating with power. It was five times larger than Wan Shi Tong.

"What do I need to do?" the scarred young man asked the trapped spirit.

"Use your enhanced flames to weaken the barrier and let me leak some of my essence into you. Normally, bending doesn't work here but your dragon fire bending uses more of your own chi."

"Why can't I just take all of you right now?"

"Taking on all my power at once without a Harmonic Convergence will either kill you or severely shorten your lifespan whenever you call upon me. The Avatar will be attracted to me and put me back in this tree or destroy me. On the other hand, taking in my power at small increments won't severely shorten your lifespan and I can become strong enough to cause chaos without worrying about Raava's chosen, the Avatar."

"Will taking in your power have any smaller affects on me?"

"My essence may overcome you if you are weak willed or have any doubt. I'll have a heavy influence on you if you can't control the initial influences or any temptations or fears for that matter. Although, it is unlikely since you have made it this far on your own spiritual merits."

"Let's get this started then." Zuko shot a stream of rainbow colored flames at the tree.

The barrier cracked and Vaatu shot out several tendrils at the scarred young man. The spirit wrapped the tentacles around the former prince to seep his dark essence into him. It stung like swords piercing him and being burned alive. He gritted his teeth, saying to himself, " _Accept this flame, enlighten the void and become fire."_. The tendrils disintegrated as it flowed a lot of the dark spirit's essence into Zuko. The process left the scarred young man weakened and Vaatu only three times the size of Wan Shi Tong.

"A few more times and i'll be free. Good work."

"Easier said than done." He was still getting used to having his spirit melded with dark spiritual energy.

"We'll do this again in a few more days."

"Alright, then. How do I leave?"

"Simply, attune yourself to the mortal world the same way you attuned yourself to get into the Spirit World."

"Thank you." Zuko bowed.

 _"Join the flame, return to the sun, ignite and burn."_

* * *

The bounty hunter opened his eyes and it was still night. June tapped him on the shoulder, "Are you okay?"

"Yes."

"Then i'm going to bed. Sleep tight, Guru Blue."


	14. The Flame's Wind

Zuko continued training and communicating with the spirits until the night before his match with The Big Bad Hippo. He went into the spirit world once again and stood before Wan Shi Tong and Vaatu. The great spirit of chaos seeped more of its energy into the bounty hunter after Zuko weakened the tree once again.

The Owl Spirit was now slightly larger than Vaatu. The former prince would have been impressed in the progress they made since the past few days if absorbing dark spirit essence wasn't so taxing on the spirit.

Wan Shi Tong lectured, "You are now ready to learn more forms of bending now that you are close to being completely merged with Vaatu. You cannot combat the Avatar until you are a fully realized Dark Avatar."

"What will I learn first then? Earth, air, or waterbending?" Zuko stood up.

"Energybending."

"A fifth form?"

"It is actually the original bending that all others came from. While other arts use chi to manipulate nature, energybending manipulates another person's chi."

"I'm going to use this against the Avatar?"

"No. You are going to manipulate your own inner energies in order to learn those techniques. As a firebender you already manipulate your raw chi as flames but an energybender can give or take away bending. You can give yourself bending by manipulating your chi now that you have partially merged with Vaatu."

"What should I learn first?"

"Airbending. Use it to bolster you speed for the fight and spiritual mastery. Firebending is about passion, while airbending is about being passive. You will need to let things go in order to win this fight and go with the flow. You're already close to spiritual master, now all you need is to put airbending to the test. I will now instruct you on airbending."

"Thank you." the scarred student bowed and began learning the lost techniques of the air nomads. Once he memorized them he returned to the mortal world during the afternoon. Zuko rested until evening.

* * *

The scarred hunter put on his mask and got ready. The arena was already filled before dawn. His match was preceded by The Gopher vs The Boulder. If Big Bad Hippo won he'd challenge the winner for a title shot against the Blind Bandit.

"Our challenger is known as the Spirit of the East to his bounties but we all know him as The Blue Spirit!" Xin Fu announced as the masked man made his way through the arena.

Once the bounty hunter made it to the stage, his opponent had quickly jumped from the entrance to the squared circle.

The promoter announced with a wide grin as the large earthbender chewed on rocks, "And here is his opponent, the Great Wonder of the Earth Kingdom, The Big Bad Hippo!"

Blue mentally recited to himself, " _Let go of your earthly tether. Enter the void. Empty and become wind._ "

Xin Fu jumped out of the ring, "Begin!"

The masked challenger narrowly dodged all of the rocks that the Great Wonder was spitting from his mouth.

* * *

Meanwhile, June and Azula were _coaching_ from the stands June looked to Azula, "He's not so bad. His breath probably is though."

Azula replied, "Mudbreath is what they should call him."

"That's probably why he doesn't talk much."

"Who? My brother or Hippo?"

"Both."

They both started laughing.

* * *

" _Thanks, Vaatu. If it weren't for your training i'd have to deal with Azula **and** June's quips all day." _Zuko was disrupted by the sight of their laughter in the crowd.

Another rock almost hit his mask. The bounty hunter had to try again, "I am the wind. The flow is my direction." A rush of air propelled the Blue Spirit towards his opponent while kicking up dust.

"He's an earthbender?" Many jaws dropped in the crowd.

Once the dust settled, the charge attack was revealed to have only pushed back The Big Bad Hippo a few meters, much to the masked challenger's chagrin. The Blue Spirit continuously charged at him multiple times as they neared the end of the ring. As one until The Big Bad Hippo began shaking the ring with his stomps as the masked challenger charged. Both men had fallen out of the ring.

Hippo fell first and Blue was on top.

"The Blue Spirit will face the Blind Bandit! The match is set! We will see you all in three weeks for this epic confrontation between the Champion of the Earth Rumble and the Spirit of the East!" the promoter announced as the crowd cheered.

* * *

Once the crowd left, Xin Fu walked up to the masked winner, "You've made me a ton of money on sales and bets this time around. But when you face the Blind Bandit, i'm betting on the champ."

"Blue can take on anyone. Your Blind Bandit is our target and we are the best hunters. So, i'd change my bet." June interjected.

"We shall see." the promoter walked away.

* * *

Team Spirits celebrated their victory at the bar. In reality, June celebrated at the bar while Zuko and Azula decided to have some 'family time'. It was finally time for Zuko to reveal his plan to Azula.

"C'mon Zuzu. I don't pose any immediate threat now. What were you doing in that fight?" His sister had that trademark smile that still managed to scare him.

The scarred prince sighed, "I have made a deal with the Spirits to become the Dark Avatar. An embodiment of darkness and chaos that has the same abilites as the Avatar."

"Interesting ... I guess you maintain chaos in the world?"

"Yes. If the Avatar maintains balance then I must maintain chaos. But that is the interesting part. The war has created disrupted the balance for a hundred years. All I have to do is usher in an era of peace. If I ever have to create chaos then it can be small problems in less populated places rather than a problem for the entire world."

Azula smiled, "Who would be the Fire Lord in your absence?"

"Uncle Iroh."

"Do you really think that he'd accept that you are creating chaos and causing destruction in the world? He stopped fighting a long time ago."

"Is that it? You simply want the throne!"

"I am worthy. I am the true heir that all would recognize. You are illegitimate and technically an Avatar. One that creates chaos. The Fire Nation would fall into civil war if you became Fire Lord. Unless ..."

"Unless what?"

"Never mind. We can talk about this later when you are finished mastering the other elements."

"Well, then I am going to need to speak with the spirits on my next move."

Azula leaned forward, "Can I watch?"

"Sure." the former prince got onto bed and began meditating until his eyes began to glow red and he entered the Spirit World.

The crown princess touched his scar, "I might end up carrying a torch for you if you keep on acting so cool Zuzu. You alone can prevent the Fire Nation from having to submit to the other nations' wishes after the war. The Fire Nation will accept their true heir and the rest of the world will expect you protect them from me. It's a win-win Zuzu. You'll understand soon enough."


	15. The Guru

The scarred prince had left the mortal world and was with Vaatu. For some reason the owl spirit was elsewhere. Zuko looked around, "Where is Wan Shi Tong?"

Vaatu spoke with glee, "He is back at the Library. For the next few stages, we will have our own private sessions since we will become apart of each other as the Dark Avatar. In order to master the Avatar State, you must open all the chakras. Zuko, tell me everything you know about chakras."

"Aren't they the energies within bodies?"

"Yes. There are seven chakras that are within body. Each pool of energy has a purpose, and can be blocked by a specific kind of emotional muck. Be warned, opening the chakras is an intense experience, and once you begin the process, you cannot stop until all seven are open. Are you ready to begin?"

"I'll do whatever it takes."

"First we will open the Earth Chakra, located at the base of the spine. It deals with survival, and is blocked by fear. What are you most afraid of? Let your fears become clear to you."

Many images flashed before the Zuko's eyes. The first vision was of Uncle Iroh lying on the floor unconscious before a furious firebreathing Fire Lord Ozai. The second image was of June badly bruised and surrounded by Fire Nation soldiers. Another image showed Zuko's 'mother', Ursa, having the exact same scar as her 'son'.

The scarred prince fell off of his feet, but The Dark Spirit reassured, "Zuko, your vision is not real. You are concerned for your survival, but you must surrender those fears. Let your fears flow down the creek."

One final image appeared taking him back to when he had faced his ' _father'_ in Agni Kai. A man that was supposed to protect him, had decided to mark and exile him instead. Zuko cleared the illusion and opened the Earth Chakra.

"Well done. The next one is the Water Chakra. It deals with pleasure and is blocked by guilt. Now, look at all the guilt with burdens you so. What do you blame yourself for?"

Only one image flashed before Zuko. It was a glimpse Song's scarred leg.

"I was ignorant to the effects of war on villagers and civilians."

"Accept the reality that these things happened, but do not let them cloud and poison your energy. If you are to change the world as you see fit, you need to forgive yourself."

The scarred prince cleared the Water Chakra.

* * *

While in the mortal realm, Azula had decided to talk to the meditating husk that was, Zuko. "The castle has gotten even more boring since you left. I couldn't even tease you when my birthday came up. At first, I thought your banishment was a blessing. Now ... it might be a different kind of blessing in disguise."

The princess smiled and put her hand on the former prince's scar. "You can make it up to me since it is a new year.I even get to touch your scar!"

* * *

Back in the spirit world, Zuko was ready for the rest of the trials.

Vaatu started again, "The third chakra is Fire, located in the stomach. This chakra deals with willpower, and is blocked by shame. What are you ashamed of? What are your biggest disappointments in yourself?"

The image was simply a reflection of himself.

"I didn't fight Ozai. Even though he didn't care about me at all, I still bowed before him. I should have fought him and stood for what I believed in. Those soldier's lives were wasted because no one stood up to say anything."

"You will never find balance if you dwell on this part of your life."

"I- I understand." Zuko cleared the Fire Chakra.

The Dark Spirit continued, "The fourth chakra is located in the heart. Air Chakra deals with love and is blocked by grief. Lay all your grief out in front of you."

An image of Zuko had focused on his scar and the voice of his mother. "M-mom"

"You indeed have felt a great loss. But love is an energy all around us. It is still inside you and can be reborn with the form of new love."

The scarred young man cleared the fourth chakra as he saw a vision of himself surrounded by Iroh, June, Nyla and Azula.

Vaatu went on, "The fifth in the chain is the Sound Chakra, located in the throat. It deals with truth and is blocked by lies. The ones we tell ourselves."

"I haven't told myself any lies."

The fifth chakra of sound was cleared.

"Now, the sixth pool of energy is the light chakra, located in the center of the forehead. It deals with insight and is blocked by illusion. The greatest illusion of this world is the illusion of separation. Things you think are separate and different are actually one in the same."

An apparition of Zuko's Blue Spirit persona appeared before him, "Just like identities."

The Chaos Spirit added, "Or even nations..."

A diagram of the world with the four nations' territories marked appeared. Each nation separated by color.

"We are all one people but are divided at the same time."

"Indeed. Even the four elements' separation is an illusion. All bending comes from energybending.", All the territories then became one color.

He had cleared the sixth chakra.

Zuko took a breath, "This is the last chakra right?"

"Yes. Once you open this chakra, you will be able to go in and out of the Avatar State at will and when you are in the Avatar State, you will have complete control and awareness of all your actions. The Thought Chakra is located at the crown of the head. It deals with pure cosmic energy, and is blocked by earthly attachment. Meditate on what attaches you to this world. Now, let all of those attachments go. Let them flow down the river, forgotten."

He sees images June, Iroh, Azula, Nyla and Ursa. Zuko snaps out of it for a second, "All of them?"

"Yes. You must be able to accept, let go and move on."

He is forced to choose between them and the cosmic power as a giant figure resembling him releases them from its' grasp and they fall.

"If I don't take the power then our journey would have been all for nothing." The scarred young man reassured himself as he presses onward to receive his power.

Zuko cleared the final chakra.

"Well done. Go back to the mortal world. You are allowed to speak with Wan Shi Tong whenever you please but don't come back to me unless you have mastered all five elements or encountered our counterpart."

"Thank you, Vaatu", the scarred young man bowed as he left the Spirit World and would awake in the world of the living.

* * *

Zuko awoke laying down beside a still awake Azula. She was smiling and forcing herself not to laugh while pretending to sleep. It was then, he realized that she had decorated his head with hair clips.

"Got ya, Zuzu" the princess giggled.

"Why don't you get out of my room? Where's June?"

"I let her have my room and I figured you'd feel more at home knowing your dear ... friend is watching over you."

"What are your intentions?"

"Right now, i'm an open book Zuzu. There's nothing else to it."

"I'm too tired right now. We'll discuss this later." the scarred young man got under the sheets and went to bed.

* * *

 **Author's Note: I hope you have all had a great New Year's. The holidays are the only reason I didn't post this on the anniversary or earlier.**


	16. Jet

The following morning, Zuko awoke to see Azula messing with her Red Spirit mask and his Blue Spirit mask.

She looked up at him with a wide smile, "Hey, I want to spar with you and test out my skills in the forest. It will be good for us as student and teacher."

"Student and teacher, eh ... I'll do it only if you call me, Master Zuko."

"Would you instruct me ... Master Zuko?" Azula's grin grew wider.

The scarred young man frowned, "Fine. Just give me back my mask before we head out. Where's June by the way?"

"She's taking care of a bounty."

The Spirit Siblings went off into the forest near Gaoling for practice.

* * *

But once they found their ideal spot, a boy with hay in his mouth and hookswords in hand, jumped out from the trees.

"Hello, Blue Spirit. I'm Jet of the Freedom Fighters and I want to prove my blades against yours."

The Blue Spirit pulled out his swords, "Show me what you can do."

The bounty hunter and the young vigilante ran towards each other and clashed. Jet had been able to clash with the legendary masked man for a few minutes until the Blue Spirit caught him off guard with a wild rush supported by some added force. It was as if he was fighting a small storm or strong wind. The young vigilante was knocked onto his back after not being able to adapt to the Blue Spirit's change.

"You won fair and square," Jet grinned, " How about you teach me those moves so I can take on the Fire Nation soldiers."

"You'd have to join us for a while." the Scarlet Spirit interjected.

"I'll do anything to avenge those the Fire Nation has harmed! Give me a chance!" Jet pleaded.

This guy's completely consumed by vengeance. Maybe I could have been like him if Uncle never stepped in... the Masked Man thought.

"You can join us," the Blue Spirit agreed, "Since Red is a new addition, you might as well be her rival."

"Does that mean I have to wear a mask?" Jet inquired.

"If you want to get a mask you'll have to ask June for one." The Blue Spirit answered.

"Why?"

"She's the new mask person and she gave Red, her mask."

"You could at least put in the effort to find him a mask, Master Blue." Scarlet piped in.

Jet cut in and pulled a mask from under his shirt, "Actually, I brought my own mask. There isn't anyone wearing white right?"

"You'd make the perfect honor guard at a wedding." the Red Spirit interjected.

Both the Blue Spirit and Jet turned their heads at the other masked warrior's comment.

Red continued," It was a compliment. A very good one, mind you. I don't do that for everyone."

Jet thanked her and then the group made way back to town.

* * *

Once they got to the outskirts of Gaoling, the Blue Spirit stopped them and turned around to take off his mask, "As my new student, you must know who I am."

The young vigilante stared at him blankly, "Sorry, but am I supposed to know who you are?"

"I am the former prince of the Fire Nation."

"You're a spy!" Jet got ready to unsheathe his hookswords.

The scarred young man threw a gust of wind at his assailant and began walking towards Jet, "No. I want to kill Fire Lord Ozai and free our world of war. Scarlet is none other than Princess Azula, and she wants to help us bring back peace."

"I don't trust anyone that is a part of the Fire Nation."

"I'm not Fire Nation. Not only am I banished, but I am not actually a royal heir."

"Then why keep it a secret?"

"Because I will change the world as it's new Dark Avatar. No one will expect the former prince to come back with the power of the Avatar and overthrow his father."

"How can I trust you?"

Zuko knelt down," You can join me on my journey to kill the Fire Lord. If I don't defeat him within a year, then you can kill me, and if we win, you can execute him. But I also want you to trust me because, I want a world where families can live together in peace."

"You are lying through your teeth."

The scarred young man put out his hand, " Look at this flame. it's not like any other fire you've seen. This is the result of imbuing my flame with the strength of love. All I ask is that you trust me throughout this journey. I promise that I will never burn you. The man I called _Father_ scarred me and I have met people that my people have scarred themselves. I want to have a family that doesn't scar one another. Can I help you heal those scars my people had marked you with?"

The young vigilante stared at the flame, "I'll go with you then."

Zuko extinguished his flame and extended out his hand to help his new friend.

Jet took his hand.


	17. The Boy in the Iceberg

**Six Months Later**

 _Book Two: Change_

An iceberg was broken and a great blue light that shot up into the sky. The young boy trapped within it was freed, took several steps and collapsed, but was caught by the Dark Avatar, Zuko. They were surrounded by Azula, Jet, and two water tribe children.

"Who are you?" the bald boy asked.

"Zuko, the Dark Avatar and former Heir to the Throne of the Fire Nation." the scarred man smiled.

The boy jumped up and looked around, "I'm Aang. What's going on here?"

"One hundred years have passed since you have been frozen inside of this iceberg. The Fire Nation has been waging war against the rest of the world since and will win if you don't join my side."

"Well, can't the _Dark Avatar_ take care of it? I just want to ride my flying bison and go penguin sledding."

Zuko's eyes winded, his face reddened, fists clenched, and gnashed his teeth so he wouldn't breathe fire. The thought of the pain everyone endured the past one hundred years was because of a kid who ran away from home, from his responsibilities. Azula put her hand on his shoulder before he could begin to unload all of his frustration on the bald boy. That didn't stop Jet from berating him though.

"We came all of this way because no one will _trust_ the Dark Avatar!" the young man pointed his blade at Aang, "My parents and all of my friends' parents are dead because of you! I'm going to make you help us whether you like it or not kid."

Sokka, the water tribe boy intervened, "Lay off of him, the kid's been trapped for one hundred years."

The scarred man grumbled, "Don't bother with him. We'll figure things out by the time we meet up with June."

"I'm not just going anyw-" Aang got cut off by a wave of wind being hurled at him by the former freedom fighter.

Aang looked up in awe and was dumb struck, "You're not an air nomad."

"I was raised in the Earth Kingdom, but it appears that I had an affinity for it when Zuko unlocked my bending potential. I bet i'd make a better Avatar too." Jet grinned.

The water tribe girl then stepped between the two of them, "You can't touch him. He's the _true_ Avatar that will save this world."

Zuko then spewed forth a blaze of red, orange, yellow and green flames into the air. The dark avatar stared at the Water Tribe girl and the 'true avatar' with silent rage, "We're going to save the world. So get on your bison and have us fly out of here."

Aang nodded.

* * *

Unfortunately, Appa was too tired from being in an iceberg for so long as well. They rode the bison through the southern pole's icy waters until they arrived at the village. Zuko got off and said, "Aang, I will permit you staying here if you can defeat Jet in an airbending match. If not, you will go with us straight to General Fong."

The bald boy bowed, "Air Nomads do not fight. I do not want to hurt anyon-"

He was interrupted by Jet's gale of wind that propelled him into a snow bank. The former freedom fighter frowned, "You're a terrible airbender as well as an Avatar that less than muck. Fighting isn't just for war, it's for protectin' people, but ya can't protect anyone not even your own people. Your the last air nomad, all of 'em are dead, because of you!"

Streams flowed down Aang's cheeks as his eyes glowed and he snapped into a trance. He began levitating and was conjuring up a storm near the village. Zuko's eyes began to glow red in response and propelled himself into the entranced Avatar. The young boy was knocked out of the Avatar state and cried, "I'm sorry. I just wanted ... to live a normal life."

The former prince's eyes flickered back to normal, "I understand Aang. All of us wanted a normal life, everything was in perfect harmony, but in order to get it back, we have to stop the Fire Nation. You have a lot to learn before you can really help me, but I believe that we can save the world."

"Thank you, Zuko" Aang wiped his tears.

"Keep my identity secret and meet with me again after you've mastered another art. I'm giving you three months."

"Gotcha."

Azula grabbed the bald boy by his shirt, " You can have some fun for today, but if you don't master a new art or run off again, I will find you in less than 100 hours and destroy you. No hundred year wars needed."

"Understood, ma'am." He shivered as she walked towards a Fire Nation boat with the Dark Avatar.

* * *

The former freedom fighter then gave a scroll to the water tribe boy, "Sokka, right? We ran into some Water Tribe warriors a while back. This scribe is from Chief Hakoda to you. I'll put in good word about you helping us out."

Sokka bowed, "Thank you so much."

"No problem ... you gonna show your sister."

"She's pretty mad at him right now. I'll let her calm down."

"Catch up with us sometime. Maybe we could even spar."

"Lets."


	18. The General

After leaving the Southern Water Tribe, the team had arrived at General Feng's fortress after bounty hunting and riding for a month. It was a magnificent establishment that was the size of a small city. It's construction, placement and manpower made it worthy of being nicknamed as 'Feng Sing Se'.

Once they were submerged in rock, Feng made his entrance. He was a tall man well-noted for his unorthodox tactics on the battlefield. Everyone in the Fire Nation scorned him and the entire Earth Kingdom saw him as a war hero.

"Well, what does a bunch of bounty hunters want to do with me? " Feng grinned, "Especially, the guy who lost to the Blind Bandit."

The Blue Spirit stood unfazed, "Take off my mask and find out."

General Feng had his men take off the Blue Spirit's mask. It revealed the scarred face of the exiled Fire Nation heir.

Zuko smiled, "The Red Spirit is Princess Azula and the White Spirit is a freedom fighter named Jet."

"You want to start a civil war?"

"No. Azula and I do not want to destroy the Fire Nation. This war must end and she is the only one who can replace Ozai because the Fire Lord is not my father. I was a placed into the Royal Family as a substitute to protect Azula. In addition ... I have become an Avatar."

Feng hollered over to his men, "Our former prince must have lost it after banishment!"

"I'll show you."

Zuko's eyes flickered red, dark tendrils spewed from his back and the earth around his group was reduced to ash and dust. He blew back all of the men with a gale of wind. Then he grasped everyone except General Feng with the dark tendrils and a grin crept onto his face once he saw that the General was smiling back with no fear and was undeterred by what had seen.

The former prince powered down and bowed, "I wish to assist you in defeating the Fire Lord."

"It would be an honor Avatar Zuko. You and your allies may stay here for the time being."

* * *

While they stayed at the barracks, Azula pulled Zuko aside, "Zuzu, as much as I like you face down on the ground. You should never lower yourself before a potential opponent at any time."

"Why does it matter that much to you? I have no royal blood within me."

"Once we are victorious, your assistance will be needed to quell any rebellions or issues with the other nations. My reign as Fire Lord will be immortalized if I marry the man who defeated the Fire Lord as the first Dark Avatar."

Both of Zuko's eyes opened "That's insane! We were raised in the same house!"

"After being burned, exiled, turned into a dark avatar and allying with foreigners, you think that this is insane. No, Zuko, this is necessary! You gave me this flame of mine and it burns for you."

"I ... need some time to process all of this."

* * *

Zuko ran over to the rest of the team and told them. Jet and June laughed until they realized he was serious. The former freedom fighter scratched his head, "Darn, after almost two years of riding together, I thought you learned to tell a joke. But I can't really think of a way out of this unless Red is just pulling your leg."

"Everything went so well... Where is Jet anyways?"

"White went with Feng a few minutes ago. Apparently, the General doesn't have a good eye."

"I never took you for the jealous type, that's duly noted."

"I'll have Nyla paralyze you and leave you with your _girlfriend_."

" _Dragonspit_."

* * *

Meanwhile, the General and Jet sat in the war room with several more soldiers, "Kid, I need to know that I can trust this guy. You aren't that naive are you? He's _Fire Nation_! Any ideas on what he's been doing for the past year other than the Earth Kingdom Rumble?"

"My name is Jet. I lost my parents and the entire village to the Fire Nation. I swear upon them that I will end the Fire Lord by my own hand and Zuko said that he would help and he even unlocked my own airbending... but if he ever changes his mind or we don't get any closer to defeating Ozai anytime soon I will end the entire 'royal' family with my own two hands. June is okay for a bounty hunter, but other than that the only thing I care about is my goal. Does that satisfy you, general?"

"Indeed, you can go now."

As Jet got ready to leave, "I will decide when Zuko dies until then... do you understand?"

"We will honor your request."

* * *

Azula was surrounded by candles with multicolored flames as she sat meditating. Her scarred comrade had entered the room, and sat on the bed beside her. She was grinning with her eyes closed, "Are we going through with this?

He looked away, "Is this really my decision or something you came up with on your own?"

Azula's smile subsided as she opened her eyes, "You are the only man around worthy of me and I am confident that there is no one else to compare with me. My nation's future is not something I would toy around with, everything is planned out. You probably think that we haven't lived outside of fighting."

"We haven't. Our lives have been dictated by this war and Ozai."

"No. You made your own decision in getting exiled, no one else told you to go through being a rebel and a bounty hunter. While my fight for Father's favor was my own decision and after travelling with you for some time, I realized why not take it for myself. That is the true way of proving my strength, intelligence and capabilities as a leader. I won't be satisfied with that old man, I want my own family, my own nation and army."

"I want my own family too ... but our history!"

"We've been outcasts from the beginning Zuzu. I know you better than anyone else and you know me more than anyone else. What I need you to do for me this one last time, is to trust me until the very end."

"Fine. We'll see where this goes."

"Perfect! I'll tell the others about our decision to start courting."

Zuko grabbed her hand and pulled her in for a kiss, "I will stay in charge, Zula."

"Wouldn't have it any other way, Zuzu."


	19. The Way

Azula blew out all of the candles with her firebending, "Thank you."

He stopped her before another kiss, "Let me consult the spirits in the Spirit World."

"Fine. I'll catch some air then." The former princess re-lit the candles as she left.

Zuko recited his chant and entered the Spirit World. The Dark Avatar Spirit greeted him from the tree, "You know I am in your head right? Why do you always want to come here?"

"Because I want to ask you some questions without you influencing me. For all I know, I might only like Azula because you could be changing me."

"Well, you did say you could control me..."

"Tell me, Vaatu."

"I won't. You are the Dark Avatar and chaos is your domain. All you have to do is endure it just like any storm."

"Then just tell me about yourself... Something to help me understand you."

"Hmm... Life, love, nature and chaos. Is anything truly different or all together the same?"

"Great.. You are worse than my Uncle Iroh with at giving me a straight answer. I'm leaving."

Zuko woke up from the Spirit World with the General sitting across from him.

General Fong scratched his beard, "Sorry. I'm still getting used to there being two Avatars and that one is the son of my enemy."

"Ozai is not my father. He isn't worthy of that honor."

"What about you mother? No one ever found intel on what happened."

"My m- Ursa, was a good mother ... or I thought she was until she left us with him."

"Are you sure you can fight your own people?"

"Yes, but I have a way of ending this war before a year's time from now."

"What is it?"

"There must be an invasion during a coming eclipse. All of the firebenders will lose their ability to bend on that day, but they will have a probable back up plan with the return of the Avatar."

"I knew there was a catch, but i can't see what could hold us back now."

"No. This needs to be a united effort with the Earth King, and Water Tribes backing it. The last person I need to speak to is the Earth King."

"If you are going to Ba Sing Se, you might want to learn about their enforcers the Dai Li. Those guys give most generals the shakes."

"How about you?"

"I'm not most people."

They bowed to each other and began to part ways. Before he could find his new girlfriend, Jet stopped him, "Remember, royalty, girlfriends, spirits and all that other crap doesn't matter to me. The only thing that matters is the Fire Lord's head."

"We'll get him Jet. Right now, I just need you to let the girls know that we have two more stops before we head for thr Fire Nation."

"What are they?"

"The Earth Kingdom cities of Ba Sing Se and Omashu."

 **A/N: The next (far longer) chapter will be released on Tuesday, June 5 at 8pm Eastern Time. Thank you for bearing with my constant hiatuses.**


	20. The Wild Bonds

Three days later, their group stopped in the middle of a forest for a training session while June watched. The Spirit Trio wore their masks as they sparred with each other. The Blue Spirit took form and shot forward with his airbending skills to close the distance between himself and the White Spirit. The young man in the white mask countered with his own mastery of airbending and hookswords. They had fallen into a stalemate between each other, and all of the sudden, the Red Spirit threw a barrage of beautiful multicolored flames at the swordsmen. The blue one dispersed it with his own firebending, and the white spirit managed to repel it with a gust of wind and then counterattack the both of them with another gale. June chuckled, "Looks like the masters have already been surpassed, huh?"

Jet took off his white mask, "Nah, they are just too busy being torchbearers for each other."

The tanned boy was quickly knocked off of his feet afterwards by a burst of wind by the Blue Spirit. Azula laughed as she took off her crimson mask, "I can't hear you, you've got a mouthful of grass."

Before, Jet could return with a few choice words, they were interrupted by an arrow placed a few feet away from his head. As they all assembled into a group stance, they were surrounded by children with weapons. Two in particular stood out from the rest, a young man with a rice farmer hat and a kid with red face paint. Jet's eyes widened, "Longshot? Smellerbee? What are all of you guys doing here?"

Smellerbee spat at the ground, "We wer' comin' to see how you've been all this time. We took down a lot of Fire Nation guys while you've been buddy-buddy with firebenders. What're you a torchbearer now?! WHAT HAPPENED JET!"

Zuko took off his mask and levitated stones above his palm, "He met me."

"You lost to the Blind Bandit. I bet you threw it for mone-"

"Actually, that's my line." June interjected.

"J-J-une?! I'm a bit ... of a huge fan. Can I pet Nyla?"

"Sure thing. I like how you're a girl in charge."

"You ... know i'm a..."

Zuko scratched his head, "Wait, she's a sh-"

Smellerbee quickly shut him down, "Don't ruin the moment."

"Give me a break."

* * *

Everyone made camp as Smellerbee revealed her admiration for June as tough bounty huntress. Everyone else caught up with Jet and let him regale his old friends with stories of their bounty captures and adventures. "So what happened at the Rumble?" The girl with the face paint asked.

Azula ruffled her boyfriend's hair, "Zuzu wanted a lesson in earthbending and he got it."

Zuko swept her hand off his head, "The Blind Bandit inspired my own earthbending regiment and I was able to surprise her during our fight with just that element."

"You still lost though, Zuzu."

"Hmph."

June guzzled down the elixir in her canteen, "Are you guys going to join the Zu team with Jet?"

Smellerbee laughed, "Nah, we're just going to continue bein' freedom fighters. It's what we're good at. But if you need us, you can definitely yell for us and we'll come. Longshot and I don't need to worry about him then. I can get some sleep knowing that he didn't turn into a torchbearer."

Their former leader groaned, "You guys know i'm right here...right? ... Besides, I bet Sneers is the real torchbearer of the group. He's already asleep by the fire dreamin' of those fire nation girls."

Everyone else continued having fun, while Zuko and Azula went back to the tent.

* * *

The rebel princess hopped on the bed, "I've realized that you haven't built an army yet."

Zuko sighed, "I don't need one right now. The Water Tribes, Earth Kingdoms and a few Fire Nation generals will do their 's nothing else to do about that."

"And if everything falls apart?"

"I take down Ozai and take over with you once we reveal that i'm not even a royal."

"You are probably noble blood knowing Father. A high ranking family could be replaced with new money that is easier to manipulate."

"Sometimes I think this could be another lie of yours. I'm used to them. Especially, when you call Ozai-Father."

One of the candles burned a strong cerulean blue, "Mother never loved me as much as she did you. Her own daughter...I had to look to Father as my teacher. Especially, when you floundered with that knife."

"Neither of them were good parents, and i'm happy without them. I'll find my own family."

"Our own family. You're the only suitable one for me. Powerful, royal blood, passionate and a future ruler."

"Is that all I am to you, Azula?"

"What am I supposed to say?"

"We'll say it together."

"Firespit."

"C'mon, Zula."

They looked at each other's golden eyes glowing with the candlelight and spoke in unison, "My anger, my passion, my life, my flame ... I love you. My love."

* * *

 **A/N: Next chapter will drop randomly next week. Thanks for reading and apologies for the eight hour delay. Enjoy.**


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